The Original London Bus Tour Returns After 75 Years with a Journey Through the Capital’s History

The Original Tour | Operating year-round from Leicester Square

Back in 1951 and part of the Festival of Britain which was designed to raise post-war spirits, London Transport launched Service J. Tagged ‘Around the town for half a crown’ it was the world’s first hop-on, hop-off bus tour.

It operated for many years under other names but now, seventy-five years later, the service has been re-launched under the brand The Original Tour and I was delighted to participate in a special journey to celebrate the event.

Arriving at the departure point by Leicester Square I could see that the bus was surrounded by a large crowd. Getting closer, the reason became clear; ‘Gordon Ramsay’ was being photographed on the steps of the bus by hundreds of tourists. I managed to squeeze through the crowd and he handed me my ticket. It was a replica of the original, showing the price of 2’6 – two shillings and six pence, known as half a crown and just 12.5p in today’s money, so I climbed aboard.

Heading up to the open top deck I was met by more London originals ‘Joanna Lumley’, ‘Mr Bean’, ‘Ed Sheeran’ and ‘David Beckham’ whilst ‘King Charles’ sat quietly at the front.

Our special tour followed the standard route and we were treated to an excellent and informative commentary. In the hour or so we passed many London sites such as Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Whitehall, Scotland Yard, the London Eye and several special City of London spots. The views from the top of the bus were great, especially when crossing the Thames on various bridges.

We had an informative and entertaining tour guide pointing out places of interest and telling stories about the places we passed. For non-English speakers there’s a multilingual audio commentary in ten languages. For those who want to go deeper into the story behind London’s streets and transport network, the London Transport Museum has a full programme of summer events running alongside its redevelopment work.

A number of other trips have been added to the original ‘half a crown’ tour, such as 1, 2, 3 and 7-day tours that also include hop-on, hop off river cruises as well as a number of special experience tours. Even our original ‘half a crown’ tour includes a river cruise and walking tours, but on this occasion we stayed on the bus for our special trip. We were entertained by Ed Sheeran, food and drink were handed out by Gordon Ramsay, David Beckham and Joanna Lumley, and the King made a short address.

Terry Gabriel, General Manager at The Original Tour, said the celebration marked a return to the company’s roots while highlighting its continued role in helping visitors experience London through its landmarks, stories and people. He commented: “The Original Tour has always been about helping people experience the very best of Britain through the story of London. We’re incredibly proud to be writing the next chapter in The Original Tour’s story while continuing to welcome visitors from around the world.”

It was a fun trip, but even as a Londoner it was great to see so many iconic sites from a different angle and it proved what great value for money these tours are.

For more London travel ideas and cultural recommendations, visit EyeOnLondon.

[Image Credits | Mike Pickup]

Follow us on:

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest videos and updates!

We value your thoughts! Share your feedback and help us make EyeOnLondon even better!